The 2015 Arima Invitational Games ended in anticlimactic fashion at the Larry Gomes Stadium in Arima, yesterday.
The main event on the programme was the women’s 200 metres, featuring Semoy Hackett in her first race since completing a 28-month doping ban on April 30. But with natural light fading fast, and no sign of the floodlights coming on, completing the 33-event programme following a late start was always going to be a challenge.
The announcer called the names of the sprinters expected to the face the starter in the women’s half-lap. Included among them was Hackett. But the anticipation was short-lived. At 6.38pm, with the stadium enveloped in darkness, Games chairman Ainsley Armstrong informed the crowd that the rest of the meet had been cancelled.
No women’s 200m. No Semoy Hackett comeback race.
“I understand for the last five-six years,” Armstrong told the Express, “there haven’t been lights at the Larry Gomes Stadium. And that is sad, that every sporting activity in Arima has to finish by 5.30. Next year I have to make the adjustments to start the meet at one o’clock so we wouldn’t have that light issue.
“I really wanted to see Semoy run,” Armstrong lamented.
Before the lights—or lack of lights—brought the curtain down on the Games, St Kitts and Nevis sprinter Brijesh Lawrence emerged as champion in the men’s 100m dash.
Halfway through the century, Lawrence and Barbadian Ramon Gittens were tussling for the lead. It was Lawrence who had the edge on the day, taking the title in 10.20 seconds. Gittens got to the line in 10.24 to claim silver.
T&T’s 2002 100m world junior champion and 2003 IAAF World Championship silver medallist in the same event, Darrel Brown battled to the line, but was unable to challenge the top two, and had to settle for bronze in 10.32 seconds.
Gloria Asumnu captured the women’s 100m title. Asumnu stamped her class early-on, taking the lead in the eight-woman race. The Nigerian sprinter stayed well in front of her rivals to secure a comfortable victory in 11.44 seconds.
T&T’s Kamaria Durant was next best, the 2014 IAAF World Relays 4x100m bronze medallist earning Arima Invitational Games silver in 11.60. Jamaican Audrea Segree clocked 11.68 to take home bronze.
Jernail Hayes was the class of the women’s 400m field, winning in 53.33 seconds, from her fellow-American, Brandi Cross (54.01). Bronze, meanwhile, went to T&T’s Romona Modeste, in 55.09.
For three-quarters of the race, Modeste was very competitive. On the home straight, though, she faded out of contention. In stark contrast, Hayes finished strong, storming to an impressive victory.

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TRINIDAD and Tobago’s men struck gold when the curtain fell on the first-round Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) men’s beach qualifying tournament for next year’s Olympic Games yesterday at Saith Park, Chaguanas.
The hosts defeated Jamaica 2-1 in the gold-medal match to be crowned beach volleyball champions of the Caribbean, after their men and women swept the indoor titles in the Caribbean Championships at home in August last year.
The only senior CAZOVA title that T&T do not hold is the women’s beach crown as the two pairs (Apphia Glasgow,La Teisha Joseph and Elki Philip,Shenelle Gordon) claimed the bronze when Jamaica edged Cayman Islands for the title in the women’s first-round Olympic qualifier the weekend before in Jamaica.
T&T were the top-ranked of the 14 countries involved in the men’s tournament, mainly because of Fabian Whitfield and Daneil Williams.
And the “Toco Boys” proved without a shadow of a doubt that they are head and shoulders above the rest by not dropping a single set over the three days, just as they had done in all ten local tournaments at the same venue this season.
With the gold-medal match deadlocked at 1-1, Williams and Whitfield defeated Mark Lewis and Ryck McKenzie 15-12 in the “golden set” decider to gain revenge as Jamaica had taken down T&T in the women’s semis the week before.
Lewis and McKenzie had forced the decider by beating Tevin Joseph and Josiah Eccles 21-15, 21-13, after Whitfield and Williams had drawn first blood for the hosts with a 21-10, 21-15 triumph over Donovan Richards and Christopher Richards.
T&T coach David Thomas stated: “As we planned before the tournament started, our aim was to get to the second phase of qualification by taking gold and showing that we are the top team in the Caribbean, and we proved that here today”.
Earlier in the day, the ‘Toco Boys” cruised past Carlos Rosa Jr and Edward Peter Jr 21-13, 21-8 while Eccles and Joseph defeated Bradley-Reading Connor and Gustavo Cintron 21-16, 21-18 in T&T’s 2-0 triumph over the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) in the semi-finals.
The Jamaicans also did not drop a set as they dismissed Curacao for the other place in the title match.
The USVI were forced to default the first match in the bronze-medal contest because Rosa Jr was suffering with heat exhaustion and they ended up being edged 2-1 by Curacao.
The Barbadians ended up fifth after Elwyn Oxley and Daran Gill edged Roberto Joval and Eurwin Daansi of Suriname 15-12 in a “golden set.”
As was the case with the women, the top six countries advanced to do battle against the top six from the Eastern Caribbean Zonal Association (ECVA) region in a few months in the second round of regional qualifying.
There are four rounds of qualifying in the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) region for the Olympics.
T&T, Jamaica, Barbados, Suriname and USVI advanced from both the men’s and women’s tournaments to the second stage. Silver-medallists Cayman Islands picked up the other spot for the women and bronze-medallist Curacao clinched the other place for the men.

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Gordon wins 200m, 400m in St Martin

Trinidad and Tobago’s Lalonde Gordon completed an impressive same-day double at the International Meeting, in St Martin, on Saturday.
Gordon grabbed gold in the men’s 200 metres event in 20.53 seconds. The double Olympic bronze medallist was also triumphant in the 400m, clocking 45.50 seconds to finish ahead of Netherlands athlete Lee-Marvin Bonevacia (45.59).
Another T&T quartermiler, Jarrin Solomon secured bronze in 45.85.
Kai Selvon picked up silver in the women’s 100m dash. The T&T sprinter clocked 11.68 seconds, while the winner, American Tawanna Meadows got home in 11.59.
And T&T’s Wayne Davis II finished fifth in the men’s 110m hurdles in 14.29 seconds.
At the University of North Florida (UNF) Invite, in the United States, Emanuel Mayers picked up silver in the men’s 400m hurdles in 50.98 seconds. He also competed in the 100m dash, finishing 11th overall in 10.85.
Mikel Thomas bagged men’s 110m hurdles bronze for T&T at the Jamaica International Invitational, in Kingston. Thomas clocked 13.44 seconds to trail a pair of Americans to the line. Aleec Harris was first home in a world-leading 13.16 seconds, while the runner-up spot went to Jeff Porter (13.36).
Ayanna Alexander captured fourth spot in the women’s triple jump with a 13.52 metres effort. Colombia’s Caterine Ibarguen dominated her rivals in the event, the reigning world champion taking gold with a world-leading 14.87m jump.
Richard “Torpedo” Thompson matched his 10.04 seconds 2015 opener. The fine run, though, could only earn him fifth spot in Saturday’s men’s 100m dash.
Former world record holder Asafa Powell sounded a World Championship warning, the Jamaican sprint star capturing the top spot in 9.84 seconds—the fastest time in the world this year. American Ryan Bailey and Jamaica’s Nesta Carter also dived under 10 seconds. Bailey finished second in 9.93, while Carter was third in 9.98. Another Jamaican, Andrew Fisher clocked a personal best 10.01 seconds to secure fourth spot.
Meanwhile, Jehue Gordon finished sixth in the men’s 400m hurdles, the reigning world champion completing the race in 49.97 seconds. Former world champion Bershawn Jackson was the class of the field, the American winning in 48.47.
Cleopatra Borel opened her 2015 campaign with women’s shot put bronze at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix, in Japan. The T&T field athlete’s best throw in the competition was 18.41m. Hungary’s Anita Marton produced an 18.94m effort to finish first, getting the better of American Brittany Smith (18.61m).
And at the Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, in Alabama, USA, Texas State University sophomore Aaron George finished 15th in the men’s long jump with a wind-assisted 6.81m leap.

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TRINIDAD AND Tobago were crowned champions of the Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Federation (CAZOVA) Men’s Beach Volleyball tournament following a nerve-wracking final against Jamaica at Saith Park, Chaguanas, yesterday.

The hosts owed much to the duo of Daniel Williams and Fabien Whitfield, as they won a deciding “Golden Set” to clinch the championship, following a one-all stalemate with the Jamaicans.

Under the early afternoon sun at the Saith Park Beach Volleyball Facility, Williams and Whitfield put the hosts in front in the final, beating Jamaica’s B team of Donovan Richards and Christopher Walters 21-10, 21-15.

But the Jamaican A team of Mark Lewis and Ryck McKenzie responded by defeating TT’s B team of Abraham Eccles and Tevin Joseph, 21-15, 21-13, levelling the tie.

However, Williams and Whitfield came through for the hosts, beating the Jamaican top pair of Lewis and McKenzie 15-12 in the “Golden Set,” setting off wild celebrations among home supporters. A relieved Whitfield said they had always expected Jamaica would be the team to stand in their way.

“The Jamaicans are a very good team so we had to be on top of our game,” he said following the win. “We had a great game to win all of our points in complex one, which we did mostly and also we had a very good defensive game.”

Earlier yesterday, TT marched into the final via a 2-0 semi- final shutout of the US Virgin Islands (USVI). Williams and Whitfield rolled over the USVI pair of Carlos Roza Jnr and Edward Peter Jnr, 21-13, 21-8.however, Joseph and Eccles had to work harder before stopping Bradley Reading-Connors and Gustavo Cintron, 21-16, 21-18.

The Jamaicans defeated Curacao in the semi-final by the same margin. Richards and Walters won at 12 and 16, while Lewis and McKenzie closed off the tie with a 21-18, 21-15 win. Curacao won the bronze medals, beating a tired USVI 2-0. Barbados were fifth and Suriname sixth,



Final Placings - Champions Trinidad and Tobago; Runners- up Jamaica; 3. Curacao; 4. USVI; 5. Barbados; 6.

Suriname; 7. Guadeloupe; 8. Cayman Islands; 9. Aruba; 10. Haiti; 11. Bahamas; 12. Martinique; 13. Bonaire; 14.Turks and Caicos Islands.

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